Ans: B

Exp:

• Justice K S Puttaswamy, former Karnataka High Court judge and the lead petitioner in the seminal ‘right to privacy’ case, passed away recently.
• The Supreme  Court in Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v Union of India,  a landmark judgement  on 24 August, 2017 unanimously ruled that privacy is a fundamental right. 
• Right to privacy under Article 21 is protected as an intrinsic part of the right to life and personal liberty, as guaranteed by Part III of the Constitution. Option (b) is correct.
• The Bench also ruled that the right to privacy is not absolute, but is subject to reasonable restrictions (as is every other fundamental right)

The Supreme Court stated that privacy is a concomitant of the right of the individual to exercise control over his or her personality.

Ans: A

Exp:

The Supreme Court held that Aadhaar cards cannot be used as proof of age, given that other official documents such as the School Leaving Certificate serve the purpose.

• Aadhaar Card is a 12-digit individual identification number that serves as proof of identity and proof of address for residents of India.

Features of Aadhaar Card

• The Aadhaar number is unique for each individual and will remain valid for a lifetime. 
• Statement 2 is correct: Aadhaar is a proof of Identity and Residence
• Statement 1 is not correct: Every Indian citizen irrespective of their age and foreign national is eligible to obtain one if they have been living in India for half a year 
• It uses Demographic and Biometric Data like Iris scan etc.
• It will help the residents to avail of various services provided by banking, mobile phone connections, PDS, MGNREGA etc
• Aadhaar gives nation-wide portability as it can be authenticated anywhere on-line.

Ans: D

Exp:

• OBC reservation in Chhattisgarh’s 3-tier panchayat and urban local bodies would be doubled  from 25 to 50%
  • The new reservation would not apply to bodies where the total reservation for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) is already 50% or more.

• • Pair 1 is not correctly matched: The 73rd Amendment Act of 1992   added a new Part-IX to the Constitution of India. This part is entitled as ‘The Panchayats’ and consists of provisions from Articles 243 to 243 O. 
    • In addition, the act has also added a new Eleventh Schedule to the Constitution. This schedule contains 29 functional items of the panchayats. It deals with Article 243-G.

• Pair 2 is not correctly matched:The 74th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992 (74th CAA) came into effect on 1 June 1993, introduced Part IX A (the Municipalities) which deals with the issues relating to municipalities. The Act provided constitutional status to the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs).

• Pair 3 is not correctly matched: Part IXB was inserted in the Constitution via 97th Constitutional Amendment Act 2011. It gave constitutional status and protection to co-operative societies. In this context, it made the following changes in the constitution:

• It made the right to form co-operative societies a fundamental right (Article 19).

It included a new DPSP on promotion of cooperative societies (Article 43-B)

Ans: B

Exp:

South Africa amends guidelines to allow genetically modified children. Heritable human genome editing has long been hotly contested, in large part because of its societal and eugenic implications.

About Heritable Genome Editing: 

Statement 1 is incorrect: The heritable genome editing targets germline cells (sperm, eggs, or embryos), making the genetic changes inheritable by future generations. Somatic cell modifications, in contrast, affect only the individual and are not passed on.

Statement 2 is correct:  CRISPR-Cas9 is one of the primary technologies used for genome editing, including potential applications in heritable genome modifications.

• HHGE can be achieved through other advanced genome editing tools like Zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs), and Transcription Activator-Like Effector Nucleases (TALENs).

Potential Applications of Heritable Genome Editing

• • Disease Prevention: Targeting heritable diseases like cystic fibrosis, Huntington’s disease, and sickle cell anemia to prevent transmission and improve health outcomes.

• Advancement of Genetic Research: Enhancing knowledge of human biology, genetics, and disease mechanisms through innovative research applications.

• Assisted Reproductive Technology: Improving technologies such as in vitro fertilization (IVF), potentially leading to better success rates and healthier outcomes for embryos.

Statement 3 is incorrect: The Oviedo Convention, adopted by European nations, prohibits the creation of genetically modified human embryos. It does not allow the creation of genetically modified children.

• However, South Africa’s guidelines reportedly allow for the potential creation of genetically modified children, with less stringent regulations than those recommended by international bodies such as the WHO.

Ans: A

Exp:

With the crisis continuing in Ukraine and Gaza, experts and policymakers are concerned about further increases in the prices of the components used for making petroleum-based chemical fertilizers.

Muriate of Potassium (MOP), also known as potash, is crucial for crop health as it enhances water retention, resistance to disease, and overall crop yield. However, India does not have any substantial natural reserves of potash and therefore relies entirely on imports to fulfil its MOP demand.

India imports 100% of its domestic requirement of Muriate of Potassium (MOP). Hence Statement 1 is correct.

Diammonium Phosphate (DAP) is a widely used fertilizer that provides essential phosphorus and nitrogen to crops, supporting root development and crop growth. While India does produce some DAP domestically, the production capacity is not sufficient to meet national demand, and approximately 50-60% of DAP needs are met through imports. Hence Statement 2 is correct.

Urea is the most commonly used fertilizer in India, largely due to its high nitrogen content, which is essential for plant growth. Although India has invested significantly in increasing its urea production capacity and is a major producer of urea, domestic production still does not fully meet the demand. According to recent data, India imports about 20% of its urea requirement to bridge the gap between demand and domestic supply. Hence Statement 3 is incorrect.